Who Knew
by warrior of the nile
Summary: It has been three years since Atem has entered the After Life. It hasn't been easy for Yugi, but he is coping. Then one day an event occurs that changes everything. Nothing will be the same again.


This story is based off the song Who Knew by Pink (in case the title wasn't a dead give away). I just couldn't help myself after I got the idea. It came out a bit different than I originally planned, but I'm happy with it.

Of course I love any excuse to adds the gods into my stories. They're so much fun to write.

I will stop talking now so you can get on with it.

Enjoy!

* * *

"Aibou, winners do not belong on their knees." Atem says as Yugi drops to the ground, tear running down his face.

"Mou... mou hitori no boku."

"No, not anymore." He shakes his head. "There is only one Yugi Mutou now." The words are said gently, but they hold no comfort to the teen. Tears continue to fall.

"Little One." Atem whispers, kneeling before him and pulling him into a tight hug. His composure drops as well as any hopes about being happy about this. "Oh Little One."

"Mou hitori no boku." Yugi whispers in return. He buries his head in his shoulder, effectively hiding both of their faces from view.

"Thank you." Atem says in Yugi's ear. He is grateful that no one but his aibou will now know that he is crying. Atem rubs his back comfortingly

"I am going to miss you so much." Yugi tells the Pharaoh.

"As am I. I wish desperately that I could stay, but I can't. I don't belong in this time."

"I know, but you'll always belong in my heart."

"As you will in mine."

Both dry their eye and stand up. Looking into each others eyes, they share one last kiss. Both know they will always cherish this until they meet again. Behind them, their friends gasp. Neither had informed them about their relationship. But now it didn't matter. This would be the last time they saw each other in this life.

"I love you mou hitori no boku."

"Ana baħibbak aibou."

Atem steps away from his young lover and stands in front of the doors to the After Life. "My name is Atem." He says in a strong voice.

The others say something to him, but Yugi doesn't listen. His eyes are glued to Atem's form, memorizing every inch of it. The last thing he sees is his outfit transform into his Pharaoh clothes while giving him a thumbs up.

Yugi gives a weak chuckle, knowing it was Atem's goal in doing it. Always trying to cheer him up. Then the doors close, separating them until it is Yugi's turn to cross over. Yugi collapses on the ground...

* * *

With a gasp, the young man known as Yugi Mutou sits up in bed. "Not again." he whispers.

Over the three years since the Pharaoh's departure, Yugi has been subjected to many dreams about his lover- some good, others not so much. But all were painful to wake from because at least in the dreams he was _there._

Yugi gets up and goes to the bathroom. He doesn't bother to keep quiet. What's the point? He is the only one living in the Game Shop.

Life has changed a lot for the twenty one year old.

Six months after Atem left, Solomon had passed away from a heart attack. The whole gang mourned him, but none as much as Yugi. For the longest time, his grandfather had been the only one to know about his and Atem's relationship. He had been his life line since that final duel.

The others tried to comfort him and all attended his funeral, but they had their own lives now.

Tea had moved to New York to follow her dreams of becoming a dancer. While there, she had once again run into Duke. They have been dating for the past year and a half now.

Tristan had finally succeeded in asking Serenity out with Joey's blessing. (Joey has never said why he gave in, but Yugi suspects it has to do with his goodbye to Atem). The two are now living in Tokyo while attending college.

Ryou moved to Egypt shortly after the Duel. The albino said he had a lot of feelings to sort out. He is now living with the Ishtars.

The only two who stayed in Domino are Kaiba and Joey. Kaiba because _obviously _he isn't going anywhere, he has a billion dollar company to run. Joey stayed because he _finally_ got together with Kaiba (after dancing around each other for how many years?) and so he can still be close to Yugi. Of course he tended to get busy with his university work at times.

So while they were all affected by Atem's departure and Solomon's death, Yugi was the one who had the hardest time moving on.

He sighs. Grandpa always told him to count his blessings before they are gone. Obviously he didn't do a good enough job because they are all gone now.

Yugi drys his face and goes back to his lonely bed.

The next day he opens the Game Shop.

Yugi had been helping his Grandfather run it after he graduated high school. He could have gone to college, but chose not to. At least for the time being. He still had Atem with him and it was easier to save the world when he didn't have to worry about homework.

After Atem left he was in no condition to go and when Solomon died, he couldn't bare the thought of closing or selling it. So he had taken over and has been running it ever since.

Thoughts of the Ceremonial Duel and the events before it are in his head all day as he helps customers. He remembers when Ishizu first told him of the Duel.

He had gotten so mad he almost punched her before he stormed out of the room. It was definitely not the reaction she was expecting from him. Fortunately the only other person to witness this was Atem.

It had taken three days for him to calm down with Atem's help and another four before he was willing to speak to anyone about it. Because once he had gotten over his anger, sadness had replaced it. He had known even then that he would lose the Duel. That he would leave Yugi.

So they had spent those days in Yugi's soul room, imprinting each other into the others memories so they would never forget. Even now Yugi can still recall those days with absolute clarity. He will always keep them locked into him head. Never to forget the spirit who had changed his life forever.

Still no on had guessed what was going on with the Pharaoh and his hikari until they saw them kiss. The others had taken it surprisingly well. Then again the broken look in his eyes might have had something to do with that as well.

Sighing quietly to himself, he pushes those thoughts out o his head as he helps a boy select a pack of cards.

* * *

"Aibou." Atem whispers in the teens ear.

Yugi shivers. "Yeah?"

"What are you doing out of bed? It is the middle of the night."

"Thinking."

"Oh? About what?" he asks seriously. He was always willing to listen to any of his hikari's thoughts.

"About us."

"What about us?"

"Do you think we will last?"

"What do you mean?"

Yugi rubs his face. "It's not that I don't love you." He sighs. "It's just that this is hardly a traditional relationship. Never mind that it's between two guys. It's between an abnormally short teenager and a 3,000 year old Pharaoh gifted with Shadow Magic."

"Not short, fun size." Atem teases, trying to cheer the boy up. He knows exactly what has brought this on. The school dance was coming up and Joey and Tristan had been bugging Yugi to ask Tea to it. They kept saying how cute they would look together and other hints like that. It flustered Yugi to no end.

"Mou hitori no boku." Yugi warns.

"Aibou." Atem pulls the teen into his lap and hugs him "you shouldn't worry about your friends. They would except this if you were to tell them. Understand- maybe not, but accept- yes."

"How did you know I was thinking about them?"

"I know you too well aibou. Plus it has been on your mind for some time now."

Yugi hums in agreement.

"Remember you were worried about telling Grandpa and he was ok with it. Ra, he already knew. And we don't have to tell them until you are ready. There is no need to stress yourself out about this."

Yugi offers him a soft smile.

"Besides, isn't there a saying that love is ageless?"

"That's genderless mou hitori no boku."

"Hmmm, that too."

"I love you mou hitori no boku. Forever."

"Forever, I like the sound of that." He nips Yugi's ear playfully. "Ana baħibbak forever aibou." he whispers huskily.

Yugi shivers at the sound.

"Cold? You better come back to bed. I know a way to warm you up."

Yugi squeals as Atem picks him up and lays him on his soul room bed before...

* * *

Yugi wakes with a groan. He gets up and goes into the shower, cursing these wet dreams of his. They are fine when he is asleep, but this was always the result when he woke up.

After he finishes, he goes downstairs to make himself breakfast- pancakes. A memory comes unbidden when he is mixing the batter.

Atem had wanted Yugi breakfast one day so he let him have control of the body and watched beside him in spirit form. Atem had chosen pancakes because they were Yugi's favorite. The result had been an unholy mess.

Grandpa couldn't resist taking a picture of it. Atem is smiling sheepishly at the camera, flour and batter everywhere- including himself. It was one of Yugi's favorites.

When breakfast is done, he opens the Shop. Business is slow so he closes early and decides to go out for lunch. Feeling sentimental, he goes to Burger World- the restaurant they had gone to so much as high schoolers.

One the way home he turns up the radio and hum along. It felt good to be happy again. He had been felling down the last few days. Maybe he would see if Joey was free later.

The light turns green and he propels the car forward. He doesn't see the other car flying through on the other side. He doesn't hear the squeal of the tires. All he feels is the impact of something hitting his side and then nothing.

* * *

Yugi opens his eyes, looking around. Where is he? Surrounding him are walls covered hieroglyphics and scenes of the judgment of souls.

"Yugi." a voice behind him says.

Yugi quickly turns and sees and man behind him. He is dressed in a pure white tunic and kilt. Around his neck is a bejeweled collar with an ankh in the center. Covering his head is a crown that greatly resembles the crown of Upper Egypt.

"Who are you? What's going on?" Yugi asks, slightly frightened.

"Do not be afraid Young One. You will come to no harm here. You have been brought here to be given a choice."

"What choice?"

"Whether you continue living or pass on into the After Life."

"What do you mean?" his voice is alarmed.

"Do you remembered what has happened to you?"

Yugi shakes his head.

"You were hit by an out of control diver. Right now your body is in the hospital in a coma. Whether you wake up or not depends on what you choose."

"You mean I get to choose if I live or die?"

"Correct."

"Why? I can't believe everyone is given this choice."

"The gods are not without mercy Young One. We know how much it has cost both you and your lover to be separated. While we cannot change that he does not belong in your world, we can make exceptions for you."

"You mean...?"

"Yes, if you choose not to live you will be reunited with Atem."

"Really?"

The god chuckles. "Indeed. The two of you desire it. The separation has been hard on you both."

"Is he ok?" Yugi asks, worried.

"Like you, he is coping, but that is the best either of you can hope for until you are together again."

Yugi silently agrees with the god- for what else he be? And if he is a god, there is only one he can be, dressed like that. Osiris.

He bites his lip, thinking. It is true that he wants, no _needs_ to go see Atem. But what about his friends? Will they be ok without him? Will choosing to die be abandoning them?

"You are in conflict." Osiris states.

"Yeah. It's not that I don't want to see mou hitori no boku. It's just... my friends..."

"Ah." he says in understanding. "Still the remarkably caring person I see. I expected nothing less. To help you decide, I will allow you to travel back to earth in spirit form to see them. Just think of who you wish to see and you will."

Yugi nods.

"And one more thing. I know you care about their happiness, but do not forget your own. You have one day to choose."

* * *

The first thing Yugi is aware of when he reappears again is a beeping sound. He looks around and sees that he is in the hospital. In front of him is his body, hooked up to different machines. He shivers at the sight. Creepy.

Beside the bed are Joey and Kaiba. Joey's head is on his shoulder, eyes red from crying.

"I can't believe it. Only 20% chance of living."

"Shh pup, it'll be ok."

"How can you say that! My best bud is in a coma."

"I know."

"How is this fair? Yug's one of the nicest people in the world and he might die. That" here he uses several colorful curses "who hit him got away with a concussion, whip lash and some bruising."

"Life isn't always fair."

"Well it should be."

Yugi's heart aches for Joey. How can he stand to leave him when he's like this? Sure they may not spend as much time together as they use to, but their still best friends.

"Big Brother."

All three turn and see Mokuba, Tristan and Serenity standing in the doorway.

"That was fast." Kaiba comments.

"Roland didn't mess around picking them up." Mokuba answers.

"He told us what happened. Is he going to be alright?" Tristan asks.

"A 20% chance."

"It's Yugi. He's pulled through worse situations than this." Serenity says, trying to cheer her brother up.

"If only magic was still in the world." Tristan says regretfully.

There's a pause before Mokuba speaks. "But won't Yugi be with Atem if he doesn't make it?"

No on answers.

"I mean, they've been separated for three years and everyone knows how much Yugi misses him. You can see it in his eyes. Isn't it selfish to keep them from each other?"

Silence meets this statement for a couple of minutes. Then Joey runs his head through his hair and nods. "You're right." he says simply. He turns and holds Yugi's hand. "Hey buddy. I don't know if you can hear all of us or not, but if you can I just wanna tell you it's ok. If you have a chance to be with the Pharaoh, you should take it. Not that we don't want you around anymore or we won't miss you like hell, but don't stay cause of us. We'll make it through."

Yugi smiles before fading. He appears in an apartment in New York. Tea is there, being supported by Duke.

"I can't believe it." Tea whispers. "It's... it's impossible. After all the things we've survived, to have to end like this."

Duke kisses her neck. "I know sweetheart. But remember what Joey said."

"I know. It just seems so surreal."

Duke nods. "It is rather ironic after everything."

Tea is silent.

"He wouldn't want you to miss your chance, you know. In a couple of days your show opens and this could be your big chance. What better way to honor him?"

Tea is quiet for a moment. "I use to think I was in love with him- Atem I mean. It was such a school girl crush. Then, after the Duel when they kissed... I felt so stupid. I've been friends with Yugi since he was little, I should have seen it. And all of those times I flirted with him... Yugi forgave me, but I still felt bad. All I've ever wanted was for him to be happy."

"No one said letting go was easy, but it happens darling."

"I know, I just wish I knew for sure that he was."

Duke chuckles. "I'm sure he is. Remember who we are talking about after all. I have never met such an optimistic and caring person. I mean, he gave me a chance even after I was a complete arse to you guys the first time we met."

"True." Tea agrees. She shakes her head. "I can even see him worrying about us even with being reunited after Atem."

"Well then, if he's watching, let's not give me reason to worry. Let's go out to eat to celebrate."

"Celebrate what?"

"Life."

Tea gives a small life. "Yeah." she agrees.

Yugi next ends up in Egypt.

He is standing in the middle of their living room when he hears someone yelp. Yugi turns and sees Ryou staring at him.

"You can see me?" Yugi asks.

Ryou nods.

"Huh. None of the others could. I wonder why you can."

"Ryou?" Malik calls as he walks into the room "Is something- ah!" he yells when he sees a transparent Yugi.

"You too hmmm? Maybe it's because you were connected to the Millennium Items. Those things have some weird side effects you know." he informs them causally.

"What is Ra's name is going on!" Malik demands.

"You man you don't know? Bakas, they must have forgotten to call you. I got in a car wreck. Osiris gave me the choice of whether I live or die. I'm back to help me choose. Although it was more of one last chance to see everyone."

"I swear hikari, you are as bad as Ryou ever was sometime." Malik teases.

Ryou punches him in the arm.

"Ow! Although he started picking up some of the thief's habits."

Ryou shrugs. "Years of having him in your head will do that to you."

Yugi nods. "I know what you mean. I've picked up some of mou hitori no boku habits too." He sighs. "I love my friends, but Ra help them they can be so very oblivious."

"Yeah." Malik agrees. "Sister likes to act all knowing, having the Necklace, but she was just as clueless as everyone else before she saw you too." She smirks. "I finally saw something she didn't."

"Wait, how did you figure it out? We hadn't been together that long when Battle city started and we had known you what? Two, three weeks?"

"Well technically Marik saw it first. That's why he used you in his Shadow Duel. But I agreed with him once he pointed it out. I tried to keep sister from telling you about the Duel, but no such luck."

"I don't know whether to be glad someone figured it out or exasperated that it was a crazy person who did."

Malik laughs. "You sound exasperated already."

"True."

"How much time do you have until Osiris calls you back?" Ryou asks.

"A day, but I don't think that much time has passed so a while yet."

"Great! If you're not in too much of a hurry to get back to your lover" Malik smirks "I thought we could hang out one last time- the three hikaris."

"Sure." Yugi agrees. After the Duel, Malik had given them that nickname jokingly and it had stuck. His friends called him that teasingly all the time.

Time passes quickly and Yugi feels himself begin to fade once again. The two others wave goodbye, sad smiles on their faces.

* * *

He is transported to the hieroglyphic room once again. Osiris is waiting for him. "Have you made your decision?"

"Yes. I choice to enter the After Life."

Osiris smiles. "Very well. He is in the gardens."

There is a flash of light and then Yugi is standing in the gardens. He is dressed in all white with a purple slash around his waist. Jewelry covers his arm and legs and on his head is the Eye of Horus crown.

He goes to the place where he knows the Pharaoh is sitting. Yugi's breath catches as he sees Atem. Memories are all well and good, but they could never replace the real thing.

Atem hears his gasp and turns. "Aibou?" he asks hesitantly.

"Mou hitori no boku." he says in reply.

"Aibou!" Atem runs over and sweeps Yugi into a bruising hug.

"Miss me?" Yugi asks once Atem has loosen his grip enough for Yugi to breath again.

"You have no idea." he says before capturing Yugi's lips in a passionate kiss that he happily returns.

"Aibou" Atem gasps "perhaps we should continue this reunion in our bedroom."

Yugi smiles. "My pleasure."

That night when they are curled up together, asleep, they both have the same dream. They are at Yugi's funeral. All of their friends are there sharing stories, laughing and crying. Around the coffin are pictures of Yugi and a few of Atem.

Atem spots the pancake one and groans. "Did you _have_ to save that one aibou."

Yugi laughs.

The others hear and turn to see the two dressed in Egyptian clothes, Atem's arms wrapped possessively around Yugi's waist.

"But that's one of my favorites mou hitori no boku. You look so adorable."

"I do not. Adorably is hardly befitting of a Pharaoh."

Yugi laughs. "So tell me how you making pancakes has anything to do with you being a Pharaoh in Egypt 3,000 years ago?"

"Err, probably has to do with the mess."

Neither seem to notice all of their friends watching this and grinning at the exchange.

"We can try again now."

"A Pharaoh cooking? We'll give the servants a heart attack."

"Oh well, it's probably been too calm in the palace for too long."

"Indeed it has aibou."

"Then what are we waiting on?"

The two vanish from view.

"Who knew?" Joey says with smile.

* * *

Ana baħibbak- I love you

Osiris- Egyptian Lord of the dead

Bakas- idiots

Hopefully I didn't miss anything else that needed an explanation. So what does everyone think? (subtle- or not- hint to review. Please!) :)


End file.
